The Life and Times of Bellatrix Black
by oddball101
Summary: I don't know if this has been done, but this is a story about Bellatrix Lestrange's time at Hogwarts, and life from there. The rating is M for a reason, but so far it's only the first year.


Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or any of the characters. I only can dream. But please review and let me know if you think I should keep going

The Life and Times of Bellatrix Black

Chapter One: Hogwarts, At Last?

Sighing, Bellatrix Black turned back towards her "doting" parents, waiting to say goodbye before she boarded the train. She saw her mother, a tall, beautiful woman, in the crowd standing next to her father, an even taller intimidating man whose glower could frighten a troll. But as she saw her mother's arms once again wrap around her sister Nessie, she wondered why she even bothered. Her parents had been shocked she even made it into Hogwarts. Her father had been ready to bribe the school just to take her as a squib, make her a caretaker. When her letter came on its own, they were extremely relieved.

The day her sister Nessie had received her letter three years ago was a day for celebration. She would be joining her older sister, Andromia, her cousins Sirius and Reginald, and generations of descendants of the great Salazar Slytherin, in Hogwarts. Nessie was destined to become a great witch. As soon as she learned the words, spells were cast from her wand with ease. Bellatrix, on the other, excelled at muggle subjects. Her parents had sent both of them to a private muggle school, until the seventh grade. Here was where she flourished, managing straight A's while Nessie struggled. Instead of praise, she received punishment. She was yelled at for incorrectly organizing her priorities. Instead of learning the terms to simple spells, she was completing muggle math at home. Nessie was praised, not just for her C's and D's, but for her master of the locomotor charm as well.

Quickly Belltrix entered a compartment, seating herself away from the window overlooking the platform. Her goodbye had been short, lacking sweetness, a simple "write us if you need anything" from her parents. But secretly, she was relieved. It gave her an excuse to board the train, and avoid the inevitable family reunion, as Reginald and Sirius had been walking towards them.

Sirius Black. She had always hated her cousin, the youngest of the black brothers. As she saw him sneak onto the train, she folded into herself to avoid any type of contact. Luckily, he turned in the opposite direction, most likely looking for his idiot friends. He too was a shame to the family; the first ever Black sorted into a Hogwarts house other than Slytherin. What made it even worse was he had been put into Gryfinndor. Ravenclaw, even Hufflepuff would have been acceptable. But Gryfinndor was never even talked about. She sighed again. Her parents seemed to expect this from her as well. The comparison was unnecessary, unlikely, and filled her with a hatred that was not quite entirely his fault.

Nessie and Reginald were the next to board, both deep in conversation about classes and possible careers. Bellatrix scoffed, they were only 13 and turned as she heard the door to her compartment open. For a moment, she feared it might be Nessie or Reginald, or even Sirius come to sit with her. But a gangly looking boy entered, clad in weary-looking black robes with a Slytherin crest. He had greasy, medium length black hair, and when he spoke he sounded nasally, as though he had a perpetual head cold.

"Is anyone sitting here?" he sneered, and she shook her head. She refused to dignify him with a verbal answer. He quickly placed his trunk in the overhead compartment, leaving it open as he brought a book down from his suitcase.

He sat without another word, and pulled a walkman out from his robe, intent on listening to music. Neither had said a word to each other, and she drifted to sleep, but not before noticing the name written on the book in front of him. Snape. Severus Snape.

As the train pulled up to the magnificent castle, Bellatrix slowly woke. The boy sitting with her had left, leaving her alone. Standing on her toes, she grabbed her own suitcase from the compartment overhead. She exited the train, only to be jostled around by the throng of students heading towards the doors. In the crowd, she immediately recognized her sister walking with her fellow Slytherins, so she trudged behind, not wanting to be noticed by them. Sirius and his friends suddenly brushed by her, and he looked back, sending her a glance of what seemed to be pity. At this she sneered, and he continued on. By this time she had already reached the inside of the castle, and didn't notice the first years being pulled inside until she ran into one.

They turned and a bushy blonde-haired girl grinned at her. The scowl Bellatrix sent her failed to intimidate her as she stuck out her hand.

"Hi." She said. "I'm Alice. Alice Smith. What's your name? Aren't you exited to be here? I'm so happy to be here! It's so exciting; we finally get to use magic. Oh, I'm so happy..." The girl continued to blather on, so Bellatrix nodded along, following her so she wouldn't stick out. To her relief, the girl stopped talking as an older woman got up and began to talk. From what she could tell she seemed to be Professor Mgonnagall. Her sister had talked about her in detail, how she loathed her and the over the top assignments she gave. Nessie claimed she and her friends were picked on especially because they were Slytherins. Bellatrix thought it was because they were dumb. But as she watched the woman practically spit the name of the house she so desired, she began to rethink some of the things Nessie had said.

The feast was the first thing that caught her eye as Bellatrix walked through the heavy oak doors with her fellow first years. The food looked amazing, laid out on the long tables crowded with students. The chatter drowned out the sounds of the night, trying to be heard through the transparent ceiling, and many students whispered "good luck" and greetings as they walked by. One boy in particular caught her attention as they walked through the great hall. He was extremely handsome, though of average height. His skin practically shone, it was so pale; it contrasted his hair, which was almost as dark as the night sky above. His eyes were soft, seeming gentle, but had a foreboding gleam, like a snake stalking its prey. He was the most beautiful boy she had ever seen. On his chest sat a prefect badge. Nessie had talked about him, this boy, Bellatrix realized. He was the Slytherin prefect Tom Riddle, the boy every girl wanted, who every other boy wanted to be. As though he sensed her gaze, he looked up directly into her eyes. Bellatrix turned away, willing herself to look anywhere else but at this beautiful boy. Unfortunately, her eyes found Severus Snape, the boy she had sat next to on the train. His eyes had already been trained on her, as though they had seen the previous exchange. Bellatrix was pulling her gaze away when she heard her name being repeated by the irritating professor. She finally noticed Alice pulling on her sleeve and stepped forward, amidst groans and mutterings of impatience.

The sorting hat was placed on her head, and she clenched her eyes shut. To her it seemed ages that she sat upon the stool, praying for Slytherin. The voice of the sorting hat went ignored as she prayed, and finally, after heaving a long sigh, it granted her wish.

"Slytherin!" it screamed, but as she hopped off the stool, a pair of arms grabbed her and Alice pulled her into a hug.

"We can still be friends!" she shouted as Bellatrix was pushed towards the Slytherin table, where she was met with greeting, congratulations, and the disconcerting eyes of Severus Snape.

So this is the first chapter. I hope you guys like it. I love reviews, let me know what you like, and think could be done to improve. No flames please. I'm going to try and update at least once a week, so please review!


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